The Shadow's Tale
by 5hadow Lady
Summary: After a very bad birthday Will runs away and ends up on Meridian where she must come to terms with everything that has happened while helping a small part of the rebels fight against Phobos. Will she ever forgive the others and return home or will Meridia
1. Chapter 1

The Shadow's Tale

By 5hadow Lady and Edited by The Senshi of Valis

Original By The Senshi of Valis (The Road to Freedom) Though this will start from the beginning and go through the six month period left out in her version.

The summer night was was a warm humid one, a lot of people being inside under fans and air conditioning trying to stay cool as much as possible leaving very few people out on the streets. That was fine with Will as she walked along the streets of Heatherfield hands in her jean pockets and shoulders slumped, her entire posture screaming depressed which she was at the moment. She hated her life, everything that could go wrong over the last year had, ever since her parents split up in Fadden Hills.

Her father had left them with nothing after draining their family's bank accounts and causing her mother to lose her job by spreading lies in the company that the two had worked at. They labeled Susan trash and whore and even ended up firing her on the grounds of damaging the companies reputation. At first Susan tried to fight it but he just had to much pull in the community from all of his friends in high places.

That was when things at school started turning bad for Will, the kids had overheard all kinds of things from their parents about Susan and Will. They believed them, even the few who Will once believed were her closest friends and started harassing Will as much as possible. The nicest names they called her were slut and trash, saying like mother like daughter so with even more names worse than that…Names she no longer wanted to remember.

It had gotten even worse though, some of the girls had even started vanadlising her stuff destroying her bike and damaging her school books on more than one occasion. After the school wouldn't really do anything the kids grew even bolder until one day after school several girls jumped her and had beaten her severely and leaving her in the middle of an empty lot curled up crying from pain and hopelessness. Her mother had eventually gotten worried and went looking for her finding her there. Yet again no one would do anything to help so when Susan was offered a job by an old friend in Heatherfield at a place called Simultech the two jumped at the chance to escape from the hell Fadden hills had become.

Unfortunately her mother was sorely under skilled so had to be put through training which she was supposed to be finishing up soon but while the guy was Susan's friend his hands were tied to how much he could pay her and with all the bills they had to pay thanks to Will's father before the divorce they had little money to survive on.

The lack of money wasn't really as bad as she first thought it would be at first because she met Irma, Taranee, Cornelia and Hay Lin and they had a lot of fun together even though they had to become guardians for the veil. And for awhile everything started to actually seem like they were going to be okay. That was when things started to fall apart, her mother was lying to her, going behind her back dating a school teacher…Will's teacher Mr. Collins. The entire thing put a huge strain on their mother daughter relationship threatening to destroy it completely and the worse part was that it seemed her own mother didn't care. It almost seemed like Susan was abandoning her just like her father did.

Today was a very good example of it too, Will knew not to expect any presents or anything since it was her birthday but they just didn't have the extra money. When Susan talked to her about it Will had told her it was okay and begged to be able to spend the evening alone with her mother. Susan had promised that that would be what they did and they went to the libraray and checked out a couple movies for them to stay in and watch. They were just in the first few minutes of the movie when the doorbell rang and Mr. Collins ended up being who it was. Will could see the looks on their faces as Susan invited him and knew this wasn't a coincidence. Furious Will flew from the apartment without a single word, just tears falling as she ran without any destination in mind. Susan had lied to her, had destroyed their mother daughter evening and the only birthday present Will had asked for.

The entire evening was spent with Will walking aimlessly around town thinking of everything that had happened over the last year which had even come to include her friends. She had heard them several times talking behind her back about her letting Phobos get a hold of Elyon. Cornelia had even said that she wished Will had never came to Heatherfield, something the red head was starting to wish herself.

Cornelia must have been right though, Will was a worthless leader. In fact Will could even do the blonde one better, she was beginning to admit to herself that she was worthless. It would all make sense then, everyone who came to know her would throw her aside and abandon her as if she was nothing. Her dad, her friends in Fadden Hills, her friends here in Heatherfield, and now her own mother. She must have been blaming the wrong people the entire last year when the answer was obvious…It was all her fault.

Looking up at the stars she could feel the tears starting anew, wishing for something better or to jest be left alone to die in peace. It wasn't as if many people would miss her if she was gone. Her friends, if she could even call them that, would have their wish of her no longer being around. Her mother wouldn't have to lie and sneak around and would be free to see Mr. Collins and probably wouldn't even miss Will.

"Hey Will." A very familiar voice said pulling her from her thoughts, Wiping the tears away she turned and looked at Caleb who was holding a small package in his hands.

"Hi Caleb." Will said softly while trying to avoid looking him directly in his eyes.

"Will, I was planning on giving this to you tomorrow but I might not be able to make it." Caleb said nervously handing her the package. Gently she tore the paper away and gasped at the beautiful carving of her in guardian form. The wings especially caught her eyes, they were breathtaking. Whatever they were made out of, it was something that she had never seen before. (Not from the cartoon, this is actually a little figurine made from wood and dragon scales.) "Do you like it? I made the wings out of real dragon scales."

"Th…Thank you." Will sniffed throwing her arms around him, "This is the best present ever."

"You're joking, right?" Caleb asked in surprise. "How about your mom, I'm sure she got you something really nice."

"We…We don't have much money Caleb. We couldn't even afford a cake this year much less any presents." Will said squeezing her eyes shut tightly, "The only thing I asked her for was to spend tonight together alone…And she wouldn't even do that…"

"Will…" Caleb gasped in surprise.

"Face it Caleb, she doesn't care about me anymore. You might be the only one who does even remotely care about me…" Will said, tears leaking from her closed eyes.

"The girls do care about you." Caleb said reaching out to put his hands on her shoulders squeezing a little.

"I…I have to go." Will cried as she pulled away and ran away from him. She wasn't sure how long she ran or where she was running to but when she stopped she sighed as she recognized the front of her apartment building. Sighing she decided to go back in with hopes of Mr. Collins being gone so she could just go to bed and forget this day ever happened. After making her way to her door she quietly opened it and sighed when she caught sight of her mother sitting on the couch with an angry look.

"How could you do that Will?" Susan demanded as she got up off the couch as Will closed the door. "He came here so he could bring you a birthday present and you pull a stunt like that!"

"He came here to see you, he doesn't even care about me!" Will snapped at her mother refusing to back down as anger clouded her mind.

"That is not true young lady!" Susan snapped back, her voice rising. "He does care about you, he cares about both of us."

"That's a laugh, mother! I asked for one damn thing for my birthday and you couldn't even do that! Do you hate me that much!" Will sobbed angrily.

"Oh Will…I don't hate you…" Susan whispered starting to reach out toward Will.

"You…You aren't any better than dad!" Will screamed. Before Susan could catch herself, she let the anger from Will's accusation take control as she slapped Will hard enough to knock her to the ground forcing her to drop the small statue she was holding to fall to the ground and break.

"No…It was my only present…How…How could you?" Will sobbed as she gathered up the broken pieces. When Susan tried to hug her Will pushed her away and ran to her room slamming the door shut and locking it.

"Will, please open the door!" Susan cried, knocking on the door as Will dove into her bed burying her face in her pillow and crying into it. "I love you baby, I'm so sorry…I shouldn't have done that…Please Will…I'm sorry…I had no right to do that no matter how much what you said made me mad..."

Will refused to answer as she cried into her pillow, ignoring all her mothers cries and pleas to open the door. Eve when she heard her mother start crying she refused to get up, she stayed in her bed crying until sleep finally claimed her.

The next morning Will put the small broken statue into her bag gently before going about her morning routine as if she was a zombie. When she finally entered the kitchen her stomach grumbled a little at the delicious smells coming from the food her mother was cooking.

"Good morning sleepy head." Susan said, her eyes red and puffy with dark circles under her eyes. "I…I made your favorite."

"Not hungry." Will said turning away not wanting to look in her mother's bloodshot eyes or she might cave in.

"Will…I'm so sorry about last night." Susan said softly, "You mean the world to me."

"Funny way of showing it." Will sniffed walking away from her mother heading to the door.

"Will, please don't walk away from me." Susan pleaded as Will opened the door.

"I'm going to be late…" Will said closing the door behind her ignoring her mother's sobbing. She refused to let the older woman hurt her anymore, let her have Mr. Collins if she wanted him so much. She sure the hell seemed to care more about him than her own daughter anyways.

She decided to walk to school instead of riding her bike so she could have time to calm down. She was hoping to still get there a few minutes early and see if she could talk to the shop teacher and see if he could help fix Caleb's gift. If she didn't make it she could always stop off after school and try. When she got close to Taranee's house she stopped as she heard voices coming from the other side.

"…I don't want Will anywhere near us tonight Taranee until its time." Cornelia was finishing up saying.

"We can't let her suspect anything is up either Taranee." Hay Lin said as Will leaned against the fence letting her head bump into it as she started crying. They didn't even want her around now, did they hate her that much? She knew it was her fault about Elyon but this was…This was too much. She overheard similar things before but never this to the point. The other times it sounded like they may have just been taking their frustrations out but now…They sounded so serious.

"Will!" Hay Lin gasped. Looking up Will saw Taranee, Hay Lin and Cornelia standing there looking at her in surprise.

"Why…Why not just tell me?" Will asked trembling, "I'm not even worth that much consideration?"

"Will…What do you mean?" Hay Lin asked.

"What did you hear?" Cornelia asked nervously.

"Enough to know I'm not even wanted by my friends…My so called teammates…" Will cried, glaring at them daring them to dispute what she just heard.

"That's not true, Will." Taranee said advancing toward Will who turned and ran from them, right into a slash shaped portal leading who knew where.


	2. Chapter 2

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

There is a place

Where darkness reigns

We got the power to fight back

We save the day united, five as one

We can become

More than you know

The heart will lead the way

To what we can control

Water, fire, earth and air

Guardians unite

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

We fight for life

We fight for truth

This is our resolution

In day or night

We have the strength and courage

We brave the night

To find the light

Together we will have the power to control

Water, fire, earth and air

Guardians unite

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

Power is more than we see

There's danger that lies beneath

We fight to protect the free

(Water fire earth and air)

To protect the free

(Water fire earth and air)

Guardians unite

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch

We are, we are

Witch

(www. youtube. com /watch?vMiES2FhP0PQ)

(Don't forget to take out the spaces)

Ranma Saotome, best martial artist and cursed individual sat atop the roof of the building that he had called home for the last year in both physical and emotional pain as he favored his side. His tuxedo barely holding together from the numerous cuts, burns and rips damaging it from the people he should be able to call friends and family.

Today was supposed to be his wedding day to one of his fiancées Akane Tendo, the girl he thought he loved but as of late he had begun having so many doubts as he watched other couples and how happy they were. None of those couples beat on the other, verbally abused each other or constantly blamed the other for things they didn't do. Watching these happy couples he started to realize that his relationship with Akane was probably less than healthy for either one.

He had to admit the day he met the fiery girl was the first time he met her and she offered friendship. That smile, it was something that kept him going through the hard times with her but as he realized that it was only getting worse as Akane grew more violent he started to fall out of love with her with each new malleting.

He knew it all wasn't Akane's fault though, he grew up on the road with minimal contact with other people so he really didn't know how to relate with other people. As he realized this though he tried his hardest to fix things, try and be less insulting and even to the point of being extra nice to the girl. She only reacted with more violence accusing him of being up to something 'perverted' which he never was. In all honesty Ranma had never done anything perverted his entire life, his naiveté almost a match for his honor.

That was one of his biggest problems though, he held honor too damned high and more often than not ended up paying a hefty price for it. Most of his current problems were caused by his honor though it was his father's fault mostly. If the stupid panda wanted him to marry into the Tendo family why did the fool arrange marriages with all those other families and then leave Ranma to clean up the mess? Actually, it just wasn't the arranged marriages, it was everything. Whenever something went wrong Ranma was forced to take care of it in the name of honor though most times he had nothing to do with it anyways.

It was all getting to him, all the suffering that he had been through would have driven most people insane but he had managed to survive it. Despite the multiple fiancés arranged by his idiot father. Despite all the idiots attacking him or trying to kill him, even the ones who were supposedly his friends. Even…Even his own mother who cared more about how 'manly' he was than about him himself. She didn't even care about his feelings or hardships, just about getting grandchildren out of him and every time he did or said something she didn't like she would flash that damned sword of hers reminding him of the suicide contract his father made in his name. IT WASN'T FAIR, DAMMIT!

"You shouldn't get so upset boy." An annoyingly familiar voice said from behind him though it was uncharacteristically soft.

"What do you want you…You bastard…You ruined my chance for a cure…" Ranma growled trying not to let his anger consume him.

"Ranma, I know you think that but I believe it is time someone told you the truth behind Jusenkyo since it doesn't seem like Cologne ever will." Happosai sighed, "Believe it or not, I saved you from what you will likely consider a worse curse."

"What do you mean by that?" Ranma demanded, his battle aura slowly flaring up around him, it for once being a mix of depression and anger instead of his usual confidence fueled aura.

"Think about it, Ranma. What happened to Taro when he returned to Jusenkyo?" Happosai asked sitting down next to Ranma and lighting his pipe.

"What do you mean…He got worse than he was before." Ranma said not understanding where Happosai was going with this. "He grew those nasty tentacles for one thing."

"And why would that happen, m'boy?" Happosai sighed looking at Ranma seriously.

"I guess the curses…mixed…Damn…The curses…They mix, don't they?" Ranma asked paling as he realized what could have happened if Happosai didn't drink the water in that flask. That didn't make much sense though, it was sounding like he knew what was in that flask to begin with.

"I'm afraid so, Ranma. The curses mix, there are no real cures to Jusenkyo. Just temporary ones like the Instant Jusenkyo and locks for the cursed forms such as the ladle the Musk have in their possession." Happosai explained, "Why do you think Herb traveled all the way here to get the kettle in the first place? If the pools cured the curses he would have just jumped into the spring of drowned boy instead of wasting all the resources looking for leads on the kettle."

"I guess I'll always be a freak…" Ranma sighed, though truthfully his girl side didn't bother him anymore. What bothered him was Akane treating him like a pervert because of it and all the stares he got, people's expressions telling him exactly what they all thought. The all thought he was a freak but was too afraid of what he could do to come right out and say it.

"No, Ranma, you are not." Happosai sighed, "The curses always happen for a reason my boy."

"I don't know…I do know that I can't take much more of all this crap though." Ranma sighed.

"Then don't, Ranma." Happosai said sadly, "There would be no dishonor in leaving this place once and for all. Genma voided the Tendo arrangement the moment he arranged another marriage pact with another family. With all the pacts he made they cancel each other out. Your father is the dishonorable one Ranma, not you. What he did is on his own honor not yours. Your honor Ranma, it is your own."

"Happosai…" Ranma asked confused but was quieted as the old man pulled a scroll out of his gi and handed it to Ranma. "What's this?"

"It was going to be a wedding gift but since…You know…I figure now would be the best time." Happosai said, a true smile on his lips.

"This better not be some kind of trick old man." Ranma grumbled unrolling the scroll and gasped. It named Ranma the Grandmaster and Heir to the Anything School of Martial Arts. "What about you…What about the fathers?"

"Me…I'm an old man Ranma and I finally found someone worthy to pass the school to." Happosai explained pulling out a thick leather-bound book with weathered pages from his gi. Where was he keeping all that stuff in there anyways? "This is all my secret techniques…The real ones and I expect you to use them wisely. As for those two fools…Do you honestly expect me to give them something this valuable? They would probably hock it at the nearest pawn shop for enough to buy a couple of beers."

"I guess you are right." Ranma said laughing, "Th-Thanks old man."

"You know, Ranma…If you really want to thank me you could try this little number on for me." Happosai said with a large grin while pulling a black lacy bra from his gi.

"Stupid pervert…" Grumbled Ranma as he used his ki to burn the offending item singing the old man's fingers a little.

"Owwww…Owwwww…Owwwwww." Happosai whined shaking his hand trying to cool his fingers off.

"RANMA!" Akane screamed from down in the yard, "Get your perverted ass down here now!"

"Yes boy, no more stalling its time to marry Akane!" Genma called appearing beside the angry girl with Soun in tow.

"Yes, it is time to marry my little girl and unite the schools!" Soun said while nodding the head. A few moments of violence later involving Akane and her mallet had the two fathers laid out at said girl's feet in a world of pain.

"I am not marrying that perverted freak!" Akane screeched, "I'm just out here to punish him for picking on poor Ryo…P-Chan again!"

"WHAT!" Ranma demanded his battle aura exploding violently, "You…You knew it!"

"Knew what you pervert? Get down here and take your beating!" Akane demanded as the two fathers started coming to.

"Ranma…You should leave here and forget about these childish fools." Happosai sighed before taking a defensive stance. It took Ranma a moment to realize why as he felt a large power building right above him before it looked like a tear opened in the sky dumping a red haired girl out of it. Instinctively Ranma caught the girl before hitting the roof hard.

"YOU PERVERT! HOW DARE YOU CHEAT ON ME RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME?" Akane screamed as a large aura flared into life around her.

"What is the meaning of this son?" Nodoka demanded as she came out of the house unsheathing her damned katana.

"Its not what it looks like." Ranma said trying to defend himself.

"You will apologize to my baby this instant!" Soun demanded jumping back to his feet followed by Genma.

"Boy you will get rid of that slut and marry Akane now for the sake of the schools!" Genma demanded.

"Screw you, pops!" Ranma snarled, sick of this. "I am the Grand Master of the school now!"

"Ranma…The girl doesn't look like she is about to wake up anytime soon." Happosai said, pulling out two of his bombs. "Take the girl and run for now…I'll take care of these whelps."

"Th-Thanks." Ranma said reluctantly jumping from the roof to the neighbors just as he heard two explosions and Happosai calling his trademark attack. Ranma had to admire that technique after he figured it out. At first he thought it was just a cheap attack but it was actually much more than that. Each so called bomb alone wouldn't hurt anything and didn't make much more than a small popping noise. The real attack was how Happosai charged each one with ki, the more ki the larger the explosion. The bomb was just a decoy, the old man could theoretically charge just about anything like that.

The girl in his arms groaned a little and groggily opened her eyes a little to look up in his eyes. She had such beautiful eyes and yet they held such loneliness and sadness. What could have caused them to look like that? He noticed her holding something glowing in her hands just before he jumped again. As soon as he was in the air again whatever she was holding flashed brightly and a blue colored disk of energy appeared in his path and he went right through it landing in the middle of some trees. He wasn't sure what happened but looking down at the girl's face he could tell that she was out of it again. Sighing he looked around trying to figure out where they were and how they got there but when he looked closer at the trees he realized he had never seen a tree quite like these before which worried him.

"Toto, I don't think we are in Kansas anymore." Ranma sighed, using a line from he movie he had watched with Kasumi and Nabiki recently.


	3. Chapter 3

I would like to thank Draco1000, XV-Dragon, and Draco Maxima for your reviews and support. As for everyone else, please read and review or I may be forced to unleash two of the greatest horrors to ever grace the world. The sponge and the purple dinosaur…(shivers)…I'm sure nobody wants to see that…

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

There is a place  
Where darkness reigns  
We got the power to fight back  
We save the day united, five as one

We can becomeMore than you know  
The heart will lead the way  
To what we can control  
Water, fire, earth and air  
Guardians unite

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

We fight for life  
We fight for truth  
This is our resolution  
In day or night  
We have the strength and courage

We brave the night  
To find the light  
Together we will have the power to control  
Water, fire, earth and air  
Guardians unite

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

Power is more than we see  
There's danger that lies beneath  
We fight to protect the free  
(Water fire earth and air)  
To protect the free  
(Water fire earth and air)  
Guardians unite

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

We are, we are, we are witch  
We are, we are

Witch   
www(dot)youtube(dot)com(slash)watch?v(equal sign)MiES2FhP0PQ

Will groaned a little as she opened her eyes slowly, her whole body protesting as if she had slept on the ground. Sitting up and looking around she saw that was exactly what she had been doing. The place wasn't familiar to her but the sky was, the dreary overcast sky with an almost violet haze in the air. She was on Meridian.

A boy wearing what looked like the remains of a tuxedo came into view causing her to back away in surprise and a little fear. She had to admit he was kind of good looking, long hair pulled back in a pigtail, stormy blue eyes, and a slightly muscular build while not being overly muscled. He said something strange but she couldn't understand him. Climbing to her feet she grabbed her bag off the ground and stayed a little way away from him unsure of what he wanted or if he worked for Phobos.

"I don't understand what you are saying." Will said softly hugging her pack to her.

"Damn…Wish paid more attention English class." The boy grumbled, "You okay? Fell in my arms unconscious…Ran from attackers…Ended up here…Name Ranma Saotome."

"I'm…I'm Will Vandom." Will said smiling a little. Ranma must have been from earth, another country most likely. Now that she thought about it, it was a little strange that the people of Meridian spoke English. She never thought about it before but it was kind of surprising the people of Meridian spoke the same language as her. At least the boy seemed to know English, even if he didn't seem very good at it.

"Not sure where at…Not earth." Ranma said a little nervously.

"We are on another world, Meridian." Will said slowly. "I've been here, if you tell me where you came from I'll try and get you home."

"No…Don't want back there…Left for good." Ranma said, a sadness reflecting in his eyes. "Maybe start over here."

"Must have had a hard time back where you came from." Will said softly, rubbing her eyes as her own problems forced themselves back into her thoughts. "I can relate, no one wants me around."

"Sure that not true…" Ranma said sadly looking her up and down making Will blush a little at him obviously checking her out. "You no fighter…Is someone after you…"

"What? No, no one is after me. Nobody cares enough to be after me." Will said sadly looking toward the ground between them.

"HALT REBELS!" Voice screamed through the trees as noises of a large group of people approached. A man and woman came bursting through the trees and Will could see the woman holding a little baby.

"Run, I'll take care of them!" Will told Ranma ready to pull out the heart of Candracar just as three soldiers burst through the trees giving chase. Ranma blurred and disappeared, reappearing with his fist buried in the gut of the closest guard. A moment later he kicked the second in the head knocking him into the third driving them both into the tree. The three fell to the ground unconscious just as four more rushed broke through the trees coming right at Ranma. Will almost called the heart but yet again was stopped as the boy cupped his hands together letting a ball of light appear in them before thrusting it towards the incoming soldiers. The ball of light hit right in the middle of them before exploding scattering the four unconscious bodies away from each other.

"Are okay?" Ranma asked looking to Will.

"I…I think so, Ranma." Will said smiling a little, "Thank you."

"Is okay, hope they are okay." Ranma said. Will knew they would be because if they were rebels they must have escaped into the infinite city by now since she knew there was an entrance close by for it. There was always an entrance close by since it ran under the whole kingdom.

"They are, Ranma, I'm sure of it. We need to get out of here before more soldiers come." Will said though she couldn't take him to the infinite city since she wasn't completely sure about Ranma yet. As much as she was hurting she wouldn't take it out on innocents by leading a spy into the city letting Phobos know where the rebels hideout was. She was pretty sure Ranma wasn't a spy though but she couldn't be completely sure. Especially after that energy attack thing he did, a normal person couldn't do that could they?

"I take all on." Ranma said confidently.

"You may want to but I don't buster now come on." Will said grabbing his hand and dragging him behind her as she made her way through the forest until she came out on the very outskirts of the town. She was right, more soldiers marched by carrying swords and large axes but Will squeezed Ranma's hand holding him back as the contingent marched forward. Will tried to avoid any or their eyes as she noticed the strange looks they gave Ranma and her.

"Why won't let me fight? Can win." Ranma said.

"Maybe but if we attack them the villagers may pay the price. They are looking for the people who we passed Ranma so I doubt that they will attack us." Will whispered to Ranma, "Just trust me, I'll explain later."

"Okay…I trust." Ranma said, nodding though Will could tell it was hesitantly.

"Haven't we met somewhere before?" a man who looked an awful lot like Caleb's friend Aldarn.

"No, I don't think so." Will said trying to walk away from the man, pulling Ranma with her though she could tell he was tense.

"Yes we have, your one of them." The man said in shock, "My name is Altair, I'm Aldarn's cousin."

"Well that's all nice and good but we have to be going now." Will said walking faster as the man did also matching pace with them.

"Please come with me, Cedric will be coming shortly as they dispatched another group of soldiers personally led by Lord Cedric himself." Altair said nervously, looking back over his shoulder every few moments as they walked.

"Who Cedric?" Ranma asked.

"He's the big bad around here, well second to Phobos anyways." Will sighed. "Okay, we'll follow but no tricks."

"On my honor guardian." Altair said bowing a little as he led the two through the town away from the castle at a pretty quick pace. In no time at all the arrived at a run down looking cottage on the outskirts of the town that looked like no one had lived there for a long while. As they hurried inside Altair put a bar across the door and pulled the shutters closed leaving very little light in the room. "We should be safe, where are the other guardians?"

"On earth." Will sighed as she took a seat against the inner wall next to the fireplace. Ranma staying standing between Altair and herself, looking tense as if he was… Protecting her. Why would he bother doing something like that for her?

"You came alone, Guardian?" Altair asked in shock.

"Please…Don't tell anyone I'm here. The other guardians…They don't want anything to do with me and my mom…She would rather have one of my teachers than me." Will said putting her pack beside her and hugging her knees to her chest. "I'm not going back there…I refuse to be somewhere that I'm obviously not wanted."

"You can stay here, the rebels would love to have you in the infinite city." Altair said with a warm smile.

"No…I don't want anyone finding out I'm here, especially the rebels. They will just tell Caleb and he'll tell the guardians." Will said sadly, "Promise me you won't tell anyone."

"I promise, but if you don't want to stay at the Infinite City then how about here. This cottage belongs to my family, you are free to use it." Altair said.

"I…I don't know what to say." Will whispered in shock.

"It's the least I can do for all the times you helped my family…My people…I will guard your secret." Altair said honestly. "Is this your friend?"

"Yes, his name is Ranma Saotome." Will said and Altair nodded toward him.

"He seems like a brave warrior and a true friend." Altair said smiling at Ranma. "I think you made a very good choice."

"Wh-What do you mean?" Will asked.

"I'm sorry if I overstepped my boundaries young guardian." Altair said hanging his head.

"Wait…You thought that him…And I?" Will asked laughing a little though she wanted to cry as well. Why would he ever want someone like her? On that matter, who would want anything to do with her? Obviously she wasn't worth very much if people kept abandoning her. "We…We are just friends, there is no need to apologize."

"Thank you, if you need any help fixing this place up later I will be more than happy to help in any way I can." Altair said, "I need to get back but I'll come back later to check on you."

"Can trust him?" Ranma asked after Altair slipped out.

"Yes…I know we can. His cousin is the leader of the rebellion against Phobos."

"Who Phobos, why keep calling you Guardian?" Ranma asked settling down next to Will.

"Phobos…He is an evil prince who rules Meridian, where we are now. He treats the people as if they were nothing and uses them as slave labor." Will said, not wanting to reveal everything but deciding an edited version would be okay. "I'm one of a group of people from Earth who helps fight Phobos, we are called Guardians."

"I help fight too." Ranma said, "I not let you fight alone."

"Thanks Ranma but this isn't your concern." Will sighed leaning her chin on her knees.

"I make my concern." Ranma said stubbornly. At least Will would have some company if he was telling the truth and if she didn't drive him away. The way he fought those soldiers earlier showed he was more than capable of taking care of himself. Heck, Ranma was probably a better fighter than even Caleb himself.

"Thanks Ranma…So you are staying here also?" Will asked looking at him as she turned to face him.

"Yeah…Don't really have anything return to." Ranma sighed.

"Want to talk about it?" Will asked softly.

"Maybe later…Still have lot think over." Ranma said. "You want talk?"

"I still have to sort through everything, Ranma…I…I lost everything today Ranma…It hurts so much…" Will whispered as she started shaking, tears forming no matter how hard she fought it. She tensed a little when Ranma hesitantly wrapped his arms around her but relaxed in his arms as he loosened up and pulled her a little closer letting her cry in his shoulder. "And…And its all my fault…"


	4. Chapter 4

I would like to thank Draco1000, XV-Dragon, Draco Maxima, iamkagomeiloveinuyasha, Invader Spyder, lily'sturmoil, and ShalBrenfan for your reviews and support. As for everyone else, please read and review or I'll call and have twenty pizzas delivered to your house. (evil laugh)

Ranma sighed as Will pulled away from him and climbed to her feet after finally calming down, her tears finally stopping. He hated that his English was so bad, it took time for him to figure out what was being said and even longer to figure out how to say what he wanted. The only good part about it was that being forced to think about it kept him from putting his foot in his mouth.

"I'm going to explore the cottage." Will said as she got to her feet and reclaimed her pack as Ranma also got up.

"I come to." Ranma said shaking his head as he started to realize how Shampoo must have felt trying to speak Japanese.

"Thanks Ranma." Will said softly.

The two explored the small cottage slowly taking in everything and deciding what needs fixed up first as the place was in a state of disrepair. The small kitchen was connected to the common room which had two doors, one to a small bedroom with a large bed and the other to a wash room. There was dust everywhere and many things needing repaired such as the fireplace in the common room which had several bricks laying in it that fell from the chimney.

"Its kind of small but its nice." Will said, sniffing a little. "Its…Its my own home…Our home."

"Is Nice." Ranma agreed as the walked into the kitchen.

"Ranma, are you sure you want to stay with me?" Will asked, her voice sounding a little nervous.

"If no mind, I don't know about here…Need someone show me…And like you…You like friend?" Ranma said, honestly. He hadn't known her for long but besides the eldest Tendo sister Will was the only person to actually be this nice to him.

"Thanks." Will said putting her pack down on the table before going over to hug him. Just as soon as she wrapped her arms around him a small part of the ceiling above them gave way dumping a large amount of water on the two of them.

"I…I can explain." Ranma whimpered as he changed into a short busty redhead and pulled back a little fearfully. He was sure that Will was about to freak out but the confused look on her face instead of out right rejection or anger calmed him down abit.

"How…You were a boy…Now…How?" Will asked looking Ranma up and down.

"I is cursed at Jusenkyo. Cold water make girl and hot change back." Ranma explained.

"Wow, that must be so weird." Will said, "I guess that solves the sleeping arrangements."

"What do you mean?" Ranma asked.

"Easy, you can sleep as a girl and stay in the bedroom with me." Will said.

"Not proper…Can't do it." Ranma said backing away a little.

"Whats not proper about it, we would both be girls." Will said, "I've slept in my…friends… beds all the time when spending the night."

"But I'm a guy." Ranma protested.

"You have a nice rack for a guy." Will smirked poking Ranma's breast.

"Why everyone do that?" Ranma asked backing away from Will's probing finger.

"I'm sorry." Will sighed, "I just…I would rather you sleep in there with me, even if on the floor. I never…I'm a little scared I guess…"

"Is okay Will." Ranma sighed, "Understand."

"Thanks Ranma." Will sighed though he could see relief flash through her eyes. "So friends?"

"Like that…Friends." Ranma said smiling.

"Sorry guys, I'm back." Altair said sneaking in the door. "Cedric is gone so its safe now. Also, I wanted to invite you both…What happened to Ranma?"

"I Ranma." Ranma said grumbling about the unfairness of it all.

"But Ranma is a guy." Altair said confused.

"Ranma has a curse than turns him into a girl with cold water Altair, hot water changes him back." Will said.

"So he is a changeling?" Altair asked before shaking his head, "Anyways, I will keep your secret but I had to tell my wife. She wants you both to come over for dinner."

"Sure." Ranma said as her stomach growled.

"I guess we could." Will sighed.

"Great, follow me." Altair said leading the two from the cottage and back into town. It took a bit and it gave Ranma the chance to look around more as they traveled and though some of the people looked strange she could tell that they were a good, kind people though they didn't seem very happy. Many even had a fearfull look as they watched her group walk through the cobblestone street. They finally reached a building with a sign over it and he looked at it in confusion.

"It's a smith shop." Will whispered to her, "They repair stuff and make things out of metal."

"Ohhhh…" Ranma replied, nodding at the same time.

"Come in, my wife should have everything finished by now." Altair said as he opened the door letting them in before entering himself. They followed Altair through the back while strong delicious scents filled the air though it was a foreign smell, one Ranma never smelled before. When they reached a room with a table a beautiful dark skinned woman with long dark hair tied back was busy finishing setting up the table.

"Welcome to our humble home Gaurdian, I hope you enjoy our hospitality." The woman said, "My name is Velspa, I'm honored by your presence."

"Please…Don't treat me like that, I'm not worth it." Will said, sadness filling her voice.

"You have done so much for our people though, we owe you so much." Velspa. Said bowing her head a little.

"No you don't but…If you really believe that then you can repay me by not treating me like that. I'm just a normal girl…I'm not even sure if I'm worth that much…Not many think I am anyways." Will said rubbing her eyes.

Velspa bit her bottom lip as a shocked look crossed her face then deep thought. After a few moments she surged forward and gathered Will up in her arms holding her in a tight hug. "You are worth a lot to us young lady, many people here love you." Velspa said as Will trembled a little, "I hope that whoever it was that hurt you get eaten by larveks."

"Th-Thanks." Will said pulling away gently, "I don't want to be treated like some…I don't know but…I would rather have you as a friend. My name is Will and this is Ranma."

"Friends it is." Velspa said hugging Will again before releasing her and turning toward the table. "Lets eat before the food gets cold."

Ranma started eating at his normal pace, inhaling huge amounts of food as the other three watched her stunned. She slowed down when he noticed that the others weren't really eating anything and Will was glaring at him angrily. She slowed down as she watched Will eat a little bit of the stew though not much, her head hanging but Ranma could see her eyes and the anger did start to fade away but it didn't help relieve Ranma of the fear that she may have just lost Will as a friend and she wasn't even sure why.

"Why don't you both stay here tonight and we can all work on fixing the cottage tomorrow." Velspa said.

"I'm sorry but I would like to get back, but I really loved the meal." Will said glancing at Ranma in a way that let her know not to argue about it. "We already fixed up the bedroom so we will be fine but I hope we can talk some more tomorrow sometime."

"We would love that." Altair said, "We will come by in the morning and help straighten up some. I'll walk you both back though."

"We'll be okay, thank you." Ranma said.

"Hold on a moment, please." Velspa said as Will and Ranma got up. She hurried out of the room and came back a few moments later with a small canvas sack. She handed it to Will who refused it for a few moments but after Velspa's insistence she took it. "Please, I want you to have it."

"Th-Thank you." Will said hugging the older woman. "Come on, Ranma."

Ranma followed Will nervously as they left the home and walked in silence for several minutes. The quiet was something Ranma always loved but in this case it was really starting to get to her. She decided to do something that she wasn't very good at.

"Will…I sorry for whatever did…I…I didn't mean and I don't want lose you as friend." Ranma said quietly.

"Ranma…I'm sorry for getting upset about something you didn't know about. Just because I might get upset over something doesn't mean that we are going to stop being friends." Will said softly, stopping to take Ranma's hand and look in her eyes. "I was upset because the people here don't have too much to eat themselves because Phobos steals everything. At first it looked like you didn't care before I realized that you wouldn't even know that yet."

"Will…I sorry, that how had to eat on road. Pops steal my food and called speed training." Ranma explained, "And why eat so much is ki…Use up much lifeforce…Need food to replace."

Will watched Ranma in awe when Ranma dropped Will's hand and held up her hand palm up forming a small ball of ki floating above her hand. She smiled as Will looked on in awe before realization flashed in her eyes.

"That is that attack you used on the guards, isn't it?" Will asked surprised.

"Yes." Ranma nodded reabsorbing the ball of ki back into herself.

"Do…Do you think you could show me?" Will asked.

"I try…You think can help with English." Ranma asked.

"Of course." Will said with a smile.


End file.
